Twilight 25: Round Five
by thewasofshall
Summary: Set of 25 drabbles written for round five of thetwilight25 with Bella and Edward as central characters; AU/AH.
1. sweetness

**A/N: **_The following story is a complete work of fiction; all character names and personality traits have been modified from those created by, and copy to, Stephenie Meyer._

_All prompts were pre-read/beta'd by soup_lover_9._

* * *

><p><strong>The Twilight Twenty-Five<br>**(thetwilight25 .com)

**Prompt**: 17. lick  
><strong>Pen<strong>**Name**: thewasofshall  
><strong>Pairing<strong>: Edward/Bella  
><strong>Rating<strong>: T

lick: _v_ pass the tongue over (something), typically in order to taste or moisten

* * *

><p>They'd been best friends forever – since before they'd stopped looking the same undressed, learned that holding hands <em>meant<em> something, or lost any teeth.

And then they weren't.

He watched from across the cafeteria, her left foot jiggling while she nodded to what Jessica was saying. Tyler was going on about football tryouts, and he knew that it was important to listen, but he didn't care.

Not now, anyway.

Not when Bella was slowly eating a fudge bar, the pink tip of her tongue tracing her finger before everything melted and dripped down her arm.

He would tell her… eventually.


	2. to the happy couple

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

**Prompt**: 25. cake photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
><strong>Pen<strong>**Name**: thewasofshall  
><strong>Pairing<strong>: Edward/Bella  
><strong>Rating<strong>: T

* * *

><p>She stands so close to the window, her breath fogs the glass each time she sighs. It's just before six: minutes away from a smile that has to last all night, from a nauseating happiness she's never quote gotten used to, from grabby hands and wandering eyes attached to men who could be her father.<p>

Sasha calls out, "Okay, ladies! Everybody smile!"

She takes one last look at the sun before it sets, stands up straight, and smiles. She hopes that maybe this time it will work out – that Mr. and Mrs. Edward Cullen will be happy, whoever they are.


	3. boys are stupid

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

**Prompt**: 10. insipid  
><strong>Pen<strong>**Name**: thewasofshall  
><strong>Pairing<strong>: Bella/James  
><strong>Rating<strong>: T

insipid: _adj_ lacking flavor, vigor, or interest; wishy-washy

* * *

><p>All week, Alice had made her practice.<p>

Walking forward while flipping her hair over her shoulder. Then, in all coolness, looking back, fluttering her eyelashes, and making inconspicuous hand gestures wherein somehow they _touched_.

James had been smirking in her direction for months – little half glances and then a flick of his cigarette. Bella thought it paltry and insignificant until five little words slid out of his mouth:

"Hey, Bella. See you around."

Then, today, she finally sashayed up to him and asked.

A coy: "Will I see you at the dance on Friday?" was met with his barking laugher.


	4. i wish i may

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

**Prompt**: 12. legs in tree photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
><strong>Pen<strong>**Name**: thewasofshall  
><strong>Pairing<strong>: Bella/Edward  
><strong>Rating<strong>: K+

* * *

><p>Whenever she'd needed him to be there, he was. Pale white knuckles rapped against the glass after every bad grade, best-friends fight, or stupid-boy heartache. As if all she had to do was <em>wish<em> and count to three and then – _poof_! – there he was, teeth bright white against a darkening sky and dimples siphoning off a smile – _that_ smile – she'd always assumed was just for her.

The day was cold, but Bella persisted, the rough bark falling away from beneath her frozen fingertips. She just wanted to feel what he'd felt, maybe figure out why now was suddenly different.


	5. model behavior

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

**Prompt**: 24. shirtless man photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
><strong>Pen<strong>**Name**: thewasofshall  
><strong>Pairing<strong>: Bella  
><strong>Rating<strong>: K+

* * *

><p>Lauren had snuck a copy of <em>Seventeen<em> into her duffle bag – a back issue that they all knew Sophie wouldn't miss – because Alice had insisted. It wouldn't be a _real_ sleepover without it.

But Bella didn't care about fashion or make-up, didn't pray in vain for puberty to strike before the beginning of seventh grade. She didn't even notice boys either, except for the fact that her big cousin Emmett smelled like perfume and gelled his hair.

When they got tired of flipping through the glossy pages, Bella crept over to see what'd made them all giggle.

And thought, "really?"


	6. blank slate

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 20. vanish  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Edward/Bella  
>Rating: T<p>

vanish: _v_ disappear suddenly and completely

* * *

><p>The doctors say that they might come back. Not probably or definitely–maybe.<p>

It's not that I'm afraid to start over– of completely rewriting my past the same way I now scribble down a future. It's not that I _have_ a past, and a pretty good one, too, considering how many people seem genuinely relieved that "Edward" isn't dead. And not that I can't understand what it means that _I__'__m_ Edward.

It's that this beautiful girl named Bella, who comes in every Thursday and always asks to hold my hand, tries to get me to remember.

And how I can't.


	7. crystalline

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 5. snow photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella/Edward  
>Rating: K+<p>

* * *

><p>Bella loved snow.<p>

She loved the way it floated to the ground, lazy, tiptoeing in circles as it slowly drifted from someplace she couldn't see. She loved how calm it made her feel, the echoing silence that made her sigh and turned the corners of her mouth upward.

She especially loved the way it demanded its own stillness, how it forced people to stop, and, for that one moment, luxuriate in its very existence.

It's why she realized she was in love with Edward: from the simple fact that he would lay down on the frozen ground and just _be_.


	8. pachelbel's canon

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 16. lavish  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Edward/Bella  
>Rating: T<p>

lavish: _adj_ sumptuously rich, elaborate, or luxurious

* * *

><p>He couldn't take his eyes off her, even though he knew he should. His cousin Rosalie would smack him if she found out, but he literally <em>couldn<em>_'__t_. He'd hear the priest's mumble, Rosalie's alto, or Emmett's gruff response, and then _maybe_ his eyes would stray from Bella for a split second. Then they'd be back, watching her react to Rosalie and Emmett say their vows.

Because this wasn't just about everyone in his family knowing that he and Bella were together, it was a test: was she against _weddings_, or just the huge, extravagant celebration they were currently sitting through?


	9. point and shoot

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 14. photographs photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella/Edward  
>Rating: T<p>

* * *

><p>Edward took himself seriously. It was the way he carried himself, how neatly he folded <em>everything<em>, and the crisp curve of his lowercase letters.

So it wasn't a surprise when he took his junior-year photography elective just as seriously. The Spartan focus of each frame, the metal click of his shutter release, and the constant whir of rewinding film preceding him.

But he was still Alice's stern older brother, whom Bella could always tease even though she was two years younger.

She walked past his room, the photographic montage catching her attention, and saw whom he'd made beautiful.

Her.


	10. please, let me get what i want

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 2. wine glass photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella/Edward  
>Rating: T<p>

* * *

><p>When your husband is late, you worry. It's raining, though, and your favorite movie is on, so you don't think it's anything more than traffic.<p>

When the credits roll, you start to pace; dinner's cold and untouched, and the third call to his cell goes straight to voicemail.

When the phone rings, you sound so relieved that you don't hear what the nurse says. You make her repeat it. First, the wine glass falls, then the phone.

But you won't notice how badly wine stains hardwood – not until he's home and makes a joke. Then you're crying all over again.


	11. harrison ford is here!

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 7. clandestine  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Edward  
>Rating: K+<p>

clandestine: _adj_ kept secret or done secretively

* * *

><p>Edward had <em>always<em> made fun of his little sister. He wouldn't have been a _true_ big brother if he hadn't. Nuh-uh. No way. It was, like, a cardinal rule or something. Being a true big brother and all meant that he had to know _everything_ about what Alice Loved-with-a-capital-L.

(Because, well, you know… it was easier to make fun of her that way.)

However, that didn't mean Edward always _remembered_ why he did it, though. 'Cause, most of the time, whether he liked it or not, Edward totally understood why his baby sister watched _Oprah_ like it was a religion.


	12. paradise

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 1. car photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella/Edward  
>Rating: K+<p>

* * *

><p>They'd only been here for a week. Hardly enough time to unpack, but still – the little shack they'd rented for the next six months, on the grungiest part of the beach, miles away from where both their parents thought they'd be – <em>this<em> felt like home.

It shouldn't, though, and they both knew that, yet… somehow it did. Probably because all she needed was Edward and then–_bang __–_there she was, home.

It's why she laughed when she heard the car horn. If Edward thought a beat-up Beetle was worth a five-hour drive and three days of secrets, then it was.


	13. shiver

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 19. tingle  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella/Edward  
>Rating: K+<p>

tingle: _v_ to experience a slight prickling or stinging sensation

* * *

><p>"Close your eyes."<p>

Bella closed them, shifting her weight to disguise her nerves.

"Now relax."

Bella felt the bed dip, the shifting gravity bringing Edward closer and clos— "_Relax_." She felt the word as he said it, the warm breath tickling the tiny hairs covering her ear.

She shivered.

His thighs were tucked around hers, every point of contact screaming for attention, and then he slowly brushed her hair away from her neck, his fingers trailing lightly down her collarbone, and she knew: this was it.

No one had ever made her feel this way. And no one would again.


	14. doin' it

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 4. bed photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella/Edward  
>Rating: T<p>

* * *

><p>"Tada!" Edward's smile was brilliant. This was one of the few times Bella wished she'd known him before the age of twenty-two, just to see if he'd always been this beautiful.<p>

"What is it?" She couldn't help laughing. The bed was mussed up and a twisted sheet hung across the window.

"It's a curtain!" Edward jumped on the bed, looking back to see if she was paying attention. "See? Now we can, you know–" his eyebrows shot up "–and no one will see."

Bella rolled her eyes, muttering, "my boyfriend is a moron."

All she heard was, "Hey!"


	15. can you keep a secret?

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 15. "I'm sorry" photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella  
>Rating: K+<p>

* * *

><p>It was a ritual of sorts. Every first Sunday of the month, Bella let Alice drag her to Port Angeles because she always let Bella stand around the bookstore for an hour, no questions asked. Then they'd go for lunch, and Alice got to play Dress-The-(Not-So-Anymore)-Unwilling-Best-Friend.<p>

And then they drove home.

Bella never bought anything, not even the one book she always gravitated toward no matter how many times she'd read it cover to cover. There was always something new, even if nothing changed.

She tucked the small sheet of paper in her pocket. It was her secret now.

* * *

><p><em>PostSecret is my absolute favorite, hands down.<em>


	16. batter up

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 18. pitch  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella/Jacob, (Bella/Edward)  
>Rating: T<p>

pitch: _v_ throw (the ball) for the batter to try to hit

* * *

><p>She'd never liked baseball, couldn't understand all that time spent running in circles or the way her father's mood fluctuated according to who'd won a game.<p>

Then she met Jacob, and found herself going to games whenever he'd get tickets or else glued to the screen whenever the Mariners played.

Jacob was just glad to have a game buddy. He didn't care that Bella hardly paid attention unless a specific player walked out on the field. He was too focused on the game, couldn't see how she licked her lips when certain fingers were on screen lightly gripping the laces.


	17. the pickup artist

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 3. laundromat photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella/Edward  
>Rating: K+<p>

* * *

><p>"So," he leaned against the dryer. "Do you come here a lot?"<p>

Bella stared. He lifted an eyebrow and gave her a crooked grin in response. "Um, yeah, I guess."

"Cool, cool." He shifted slightly, leaning toward her, a little bit closer than before. "Do you go to school at UDub? I swear I've seen you around."

"Yup." Bella nodded for effect. Edward was always talking about the importance of body language.

He grabbed a stray lock of her hair and twirled it around his finger. "What's your major?"

Bella laughed.

Edward sighed. "Bella! You're supposed to take this seriously!"


	18. cheer up, sleepy jean

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 8. daydream  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella/Edward  
>Rating: K+<p>

daydream: _n_ a series of pleasant thoughts that distract one's attention from the present

* * *

><p>She didn't know what she was drawing anymore. It started out as hearts in the margin of her notebook. Then it morphed into the words: <em>Bella<em>_Cullen,_scrawled incoherently in cursive, below half-hearted notes.

It wasn't Edward's fault that her attention span in AP Biology was next to nothing now that he sat in front of her. He hadn't commissioned a perfect mole on the back of his neck, or told his shirt to ride up whenever he stretched so that she glimpsed a toned stomach and the waistband of boxer briefs.

The bell rang. She thought she felt drool.


	19. flutterby

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 22. butterfly photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella/Edward  
>Rating: K+<p>

* * *

><p>"Uncle Edward! Look!"<p>

Bella watched the little girl run past her, her hands cupped in front and leading the way. When she'd gotten Edward's attention, she opened her hands, watching in wonderment as the captive butterfly escaped.

She tugged on Edward's shirt. "Did you see?"

"I did. Pretty cool."

"I know! I'm gonna go find another one."

The girl raced past and Bella walked toward Edward, slightly grazing his arm to get his attention.

"You're really good with kids."

Edward smiled. "Thank you."

"Do you have any of your own?"

He smiled wider, placing his hands on Bella's stomach. "Soon."


	20. you must be a tourist

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 11. napkin photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella  
>Rating: K+<p>

* * *

><p>The café was busy, the barista's voice barely rising above the murmur of casual conversation. It wasn't that it was going to be a <em>bad<em> day, just that so many things had already gone wrong that Bella couldn't see it getting any better. When she finally made it to the sugar table, it felt like she had just fought for the last packet in Seattle.

_Some_ Christmas spirit.

It wasn't until she spilled coffee on her new pants that Bella saw the pretentiously uplifting message scrawled across one napkin. She couldn't help but laugh. At least she wasn't _that_ weird.


	21. couple's fight

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 9. friction  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella/Edward  
>Rating: T<p>

friction: _n_ conflict or animosity caused by a clash of wills, temperaments, or opinions

* * *

><p>"Jesus, Edward! Do you have to always be so goddamn pretentious?" Bella stalked into their apartment, trying to slam the door behind her.<p>

"Yes, Bella," Edward caught the wood with his foot, "I always have to be so goddamn pretentious about a field of law that I shadowed for eighteen months." He banged it shut, stomping after her. "Maybe you should tell your father that not every court case I take aligns with my moral beliefs!"

"Oh, so now it's about your _beliefs_. How righteous."

"Yes, Bella. How "righteous" of me to _have_ a set of beliefs."

The slap resonated.


	22. hide and seek

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 23. hands over face photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella/Edward  
>Rating: K+<p>

* * *

><p>"What's the point of this?" His voice was grousing, almost pleading. He really just wanted to drag her away from the group and kiss her, but his sister had made the rules, so they were stuck here.<p>

"I forget." She giggled, a bit tipsy and too absorbed with the feel of his hand on her face and the small distance between them to remember to listen to the girl who'd claimed they were now best friends.

"Okay," he leaned in. "Stay quiet and follow me."

She nodded, only opening her eyes when she felt his long fingers intertwine with hers.


	23. lovely

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 6. ambivalence  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Edward/Bella  
>Rating: T<p>

ambivalence: _adj_ having mixed feelings or contradictory ideas about something or someone

* * *

><p>Edward stared at his computer screen, the blinking cursor keeping time. All he'd managed to write in ten minutes was <em>Cecelia<em>.

How was he supposed to tell his girlfriend of fifteen months that he couldn't move in with her? That he didn't see their relationship going any further? That he had yet to fall in love with her because he'd _already_ fallen in love with her best friend, six months ago?

He couldn't, at least not like this.

The thought of Bella brought a smile to his lips, but Edward shook it off. She didn't deserve him, neither did Ceclia.


	24. yes

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 21. ocean photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella/Edward  
>Rating: K+<p>

* * *

><p>The title read "She Said 'Yes,'" but Stacy had no idea what that meant. She was only here because her best friend had a crush on the artist and was hoping she would "accidentally" fall on top of him and then… whatever. Stacy didn't care; she was too tired from working and too hungry for finger food to be appropriately enthused.<p>

"Let's go."

Stacy turned, seeing the defeated slump of Meg's shoulders. "Aren't you going to–" she gestured.

Meg shook her head, holding up her left hand and waggling her third finger.

Stacy looked back at the picture. "Oh."


	25. hello goodbye

**The Twilight Twenty-Five**  
>(thetwilight25 .com)<p>

Prompt: 13. beach photo (found at thetwilight25 .com/round-5/prompts)  
>Pen Name: thewasofshall<br>Pairing: Bella  
>Rating: K+<p>

* * *

><p>The photo was silly, but Bella smiled whenever she saw it. They'd acted like they were fourteen on purpose, if only to stall the clock from creeping any further past twenty-five.<p>

It represented all of them together like they'd been since high school, spending long days at the beach and warm nights drinking on the deck of the Cullen's beach house. (They did that at fourteen, too.)

They'd just needed one more summer as a sextet; one more moment before two pairs moved away, and one got married. One last hurrah before they were forced into adulthood.

And it worked.


End file.
